Expecting to hate it, I sit myself down to watch Harsh Realm, the brand spankin' new hour of sci-fi created by Chris Carter -- the man who orders me decaffeinated coffee in my nightmares. The verdict? In short, Apocalypse Now, Full Metal Jacket, Brazil, and The Matrix. What do these films have in common? Harsh Realm borrows a whole lot from them, that's what. So, the bad thing is that there's not a whole lot we haven't seen in before elsewhere in another form. The good thing is, at least it pilfers from really good movies! To my pleasant surprise, somehow, somewhere in there, Harsh Realm develops and evolves into its own dynamic and totally engaging entity.

We are introduced to Lt. Thomas Hobbes (Scott Bairstow), a man ready to leave the army to live a happier life with his fiancee, Sophie (Samantha Mathis). Thwarting his plans however is a grim looking colonel (Lance Henriksen, playing Frank Black in fatigues) who recruits him to enter a virtual reality simulator called Harsh Realm. As narrated by a woman on a war propaganda video (who sounds remarkably like Dana Scully), "In Harsh Realm, landscapes and people are identical to our world, down to every man, woman and child. By putting the players in this simulated crisis scenario, we can protect national security."

Assured that this is just a game, Hobbes' mission is to defeat the military commander, Omar Santiago (Terry O'Quinn), who now rules over Harsh Realm. Once in the game, Hobbes discovers that Santiago is not just a virtual character, but a real human being who has hijacked the whole system. Along the way, he meets a disgruntled rogue named Mike Pinnochio (D.B. Sweeney), who's opposed to Santiago's reign and reluctantly ends up helping Hobbes in his mission.

The pilot has a real cinematic quality, and for the amount it cost to produce -- a whopping $6.5 million -- I guess it better have. Watch the teaser though and you'll see where that money went. One of the most impressive achievements to be seen has got to be converting the historic Gastown area into a war torn Sarajevo. In these scenes (and throughout the pilot) Joel Ransom's cinematography is consistently dreary, which was likely the desired effect. Perhaps it's even a little too dreary (present-day New Jersey looks about as bleak as the post-nuclear blast New Jersey)!

Director Daniel Sackheim has some real fun by never letting the camera stay still for long. Along with Carter and editor, Michael Kewley, the three work out a slick, fast-paced narrative. This is greatly aided by Carter (for the most part) laying off the long pretentious monologues he's normally so fond of and allowing the visuals to explain themselves. I am still struck by his dialogue, which is both crisp and gasp coherent! In fact, Harsh Realm's greatest strength is that everything in it makes sense. Any time I found myself doubting the logic of the virtual world, Hobbes would already be voicing my doubts to Pinnocchio. Pinnocchio in turn would deliver rational explanations (in the form of rapid-fire insults) during all the proper moments in the storyline.

Many X-Files fans were upset when Scott Bairstow was chosen for Lt. Hobbes after many months of rumours and speculation that Nicholas Lea (a.k.a Alex Krycek) would be playing the role. They shouldn't be, since Bairstow is the best thing in it. He has one of the most expressive faces I've ever seen, always conveyed in complete earnest. The oddest casting choice comes with our second fair-haired boy, D.B Sweeney. As a smart-ass renegade on the lam, Pinocchio essentially IS Alex Krycek. Knowing that Lea was waiting in the wings for a part in this series, it becomes difficult not to envision him in Sweeney's place delivering all of the show's best lines. Terry O'Quinn as the villain only gets about five minutes of air time at best, but his role will eventually grow in the future.

Harsh Realm's biggest stumbling block is in the character of Sophie, played by Samantha Mathis. Her role is a very important one. It may even have been the most important, since she is the emotional core of the entire show. Unfortunately, any emphasis on her or what she means to Hobbes is never fully touched on. Perhaps this is because Mathis' performance is akin to a large piece of Balsa wood. But all can't be blamed on the actress -- her first scene has her stripping her clothes off, and it pretty much goes downhill from there. By the end, Sophie simply serves as some object that Hobbes must re-attain, which is a such waste of a potentially good character.

Harsh Realm is a lot more successful in head than in heart, but it certainly has plenty of cool ideas to make for a fascinating series. The greatest challenge lies in the budget. Will it be able to maintain the same kind of production value at about one-third of the pilot's cost? If it can, then kudos to the line producer! If it can't, then that's why they cast Scott Bairstow, who I believe is strong enough to carry the whole damn show on his charisma alone. At least until those Shiban scripts start floating in.

Harsh Realm premieres Friday, October 8 on FOX at 9:00 PM EST.

DROOL FACTOR: Your intense blue eyes, your boyish good looks, and a Canadian boy to boot! Where have you been all my life, Scott Bairstow? Married with two children, you say? Why is life is so unfair?

GROSS-OUT FACTOR: The series is violent more so than gross, though gunshot wounds are shown at length.

STRONG CHICK FACTOR: The only truly weak element in Harsh Realm. There are only two prominent women in the whole thing - one is a gun toting mute with fairy-like powers. The other is the wholly uninteresting Sophie, who is given nothing to do but look distraught and reply on occasion when being spoken to. By the way, just a suggestion, but when you present an actress as the "guest star" in the opening credits, that gives away a whole lot in regards to how long she'll last on the show...

- Julie Ng